Frank Fields is not an author that I am familiar with, but after reading this thoroughly enjoyable western adventure, I hope to come across more of this talented writer's work. I'm also hoping that I am able to eventually find out a bit more information on Mr. Fields too.
I can say that the copy of Murder At Goose Rapids that I found at a local thrift store was a British edition, so that may mean that Frank Fields is an author from the United Kingdom. This might sound a bit surprising to some of my fellow Americans, but the British western fiction scene was a very real thing, particularly back in the seventies, and it did feature some very talented writers too.
Essentially Murder At Goose Rapids starts out as a murder mystery, but then it turns into an exciting chase yarn in the final third of the book. It's a tightly told tale, with a number of interesting characters, and a plot that moves along at a more than decent pace.
When Sheriff Dan Robbins is murdered in the quiet cattle town of Goose Rapids, U.S. Marshal Ellis Stack is brought in to get to the bottom of the mystery, and bring Robbins' killer to justice. This leads to the introduction of a number of shifty suspects, all of which possessed a motive, and all of which had the chance to do the deadly deed.
Honestly, I found this novel to be a pleasant surprise. I was expecting a quick and possibly fun read, but what I got was a whole lot more than I could ever have expected. Check it out if you can find a copy, it's well worth a read.
-W. Jay Pinto
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